(This question is among a batch of questions that were asked at the DisplaySearch HDTV Conference 2005. For more information, you can click the logo below.)
Are you satisfied with your HDTV experience?
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Shane
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Are you satisfied with your HDTV experience?
Are you satisfied with your HDTV experience?
(This question is among a batch of questions that were asked at the DisplaySearch HDTV Conference 2005. For more information, you can click the logo below.)
(This question is among a batch of questions that were asked at the DisplaySearch HDTV Conference 2005. For more information, you can click the logo below.)
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RichardBronosky
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Fighting DRM is such a pain.
My wife's love of HD caused me to give up on my MythTV DVR. The Linux based, Open Source, MythTV is capable of handling HD, but in each market the consumer must trial and error with ways of circumventing their cable company's obstruction. It was taking too much of my time from my new baby, so I gave in an accepted the Comcast DVR which is a horrible horrible horrible piece of garbage. It's so complicated to deal with (and I am an engineer) that I find myself just using bittorrent to get the shows that I should be able to record and exercise fair-use on. The problem is that the bittorrent shows have the commercials removed, and I feel guilty about that. I personally feel obligated to watch each commercial once. After all, it is because of those advertisers that I can enjoy any television. But, I don't feel the need to watch the same Ford and AT&T commercials on every episode of American Idol.
I'm preparing to install an antenna on my roof and I will drop cable all together and clear my conscious.
I'm preparing to install an antenna on my roof and I will drop cable all together and clear my conscious.
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eliwhitney
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- Location: Oklahoma
DRM ISSUES
Hi RichardBronosky -
And, going to an outside antenna for OTA - HD will "solve" or eliminate these
"DRM" problems how, please?
Same embedded .. do not copy .. 'flags' exist.
And, there'll be only the 5 or 6 network HD channels (counting PBS) instead of the two dozen or more HD Channels otherwise obtained .
And, going to an outside antenna for OTA - HD will "solve" or eliminate these
"DRM" problems how, please?
Same embedded .. do not copy .. 'flags' exist.
And, there'll be only the 5 or 6 network HD channels (counting PBS) instead of the two dozen or more HD Channels otherwise obtained .
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RichardBronosky
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The flags do not bother me. I don't use microsoft products so it doesn't effect me.
As far as only getting the major networks plus PBS, I'm fine with that as well. I'd rather know that I am not paying a company to treat me like a criminal. Which is exactly what the cable company does. They treat their customers like criminals. It's not their customers they need to worry about. It's the people who don't have a cable bill that are the concern. It really makes no sense at all.
To me I feel like I went into a nice steak house and ordered a $50 steak only to have the server put it into a food processor and bring me puree. Then he stands beside be, tells me how, when, and where I must drink it.
If I did to my customers what Comcast does to me, I wouldn't have any money to pay a cable bill. That is a good indication to me that I shouldn't pay one.
As far as only getting the major networks plus PBS, I'm fine with that as well. I'd rather know that I am not paying a company to treat me like a criminal. Which is exactly what the cable company does. They treat their customers like criminals. It's not their customers they need to worry about. It's the people who don't have a cable bill that are the concern. It really makes no sense at all.
To me I feel like I went into a nice steak house and ordered a $50 steak only to have the server put it into a food processor and bring me puree. Then he stands beside be, tells me how, when, and where I must drink it.
If I did to my customers what Comcast does to me, I wouldn't have any money to pay a cable bill. That is a good indication to me that I shouldn't pay one.
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hidefbob
- Major Contributor
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- Joined: Wed Sep 22, 2004 1:07 am
If it is not in HDTV it is not worth watching!
I was a very early adopter to HDTV ... early 2000. At that time there was very little programming in HDTV ... mainly from PBS, CBS and some from ABC. There were tons of problems with HD broadcasts back then ... it was only for the real HDTV fanatics. Picture and sound dropouts were numerous. Programs would start in HD switch to SD then back to HD.
Equipment ... I started with a Sony KV-36XBR400 which gave an excellent HD picture. Last year it was time upgrade to a larger screen and a set with HDMI inputs ... I upgraded to a 60" Pioneer Elite Signature Pro-141FD ... which IMO is by far the finest flat screen TV on the market today. The better the source the better the picture ... a reference quality BD (such as Phantom of the Opera - 2004) can result in a 3D like image. I also added a Pioneer Elite BDP-05FD. This player had some teething problems but with FW upgrades delivers a very reliable, outstanding picture.
Providers ... My first HDTV provider here in Canada was Star Choice. In 2004 I added Shaw Cable mainly due to the fact they were the first provider with a PVR. In 2005 I added Bell ExpressVu mainly because they were carrying more HD channels. Today each of my 3 providers has there pluses and minuses.
1. Bell TV (formerly Bell ExpressVu) ... pluses ... still has the most HD stations, not affected by heavy rains or light snow, reliable PVR, only PVR with an optional external hard drive, PVR has a dual tuner with picture-in-a-picture allowing 2 different sports events to be watched simultaneously. Minuses ... simsubs (when a program is being simultaneously shown on a Canadian Station they will block the American station and substitute the Canadian station ... a practice which I believe is violation of my freedoms or rights), tends to over compress resulting in excessive macroblocking at times, particularly during sports.
2. Star Choice ... pluses ... has gradually added more HD channels to the point that it has almost as many as Bell TV, does not simsub, has the best PQ of the 3 providers, reliable dual tuner PVR with a new one with an external hard drive coming soon. Minuses ... service knocked out by heavy rain or light snow due to the low angle of the satellite from my area.
3. Shaw Cable ... pluses ... I only keep this provider for times when weather knocks out my satellite service and at present I only have cable service for my old Sony in the kitchen/rec area, reliable PVR. Minuses ... fewest HD channels, sound dropouts are a problem at times on certain channels.
Television Stations ... HDNet has the finest PQ of any station on the air. ABC Boston ranks right up there with them. I regularly watch "Chronicle" (locally produced news magazine) on ABC Boston and find the PQ to be outstanding. Although PBS was an early HD broadcaster, they have fallen behind in the quantity of HD broadcasts. Too many programs are still presented in widescreen. As for the major networks, the PQ not only varies from station to station, but program to program and even from scene to scene! It was not until I bought my Pioneer that the differences really became noticeable! In Canada, CBC tends to vary widely in their HD PQ ... from outstanding to mediocre. TSN HD on the whole has much better PQ for sports than does CBC. CTV and Global are lagging sadly behind in presenting local programming and news in HDTV.
Programs ... most prime time programs are now broadcast in HD, and the majority of sports are HD. The Masters and the US Open Tennis Tournament both have excellent PQ and extensive hours of coverage (but they still need to add HD cameras on a couple more courts). There are a number of Specialty Channels such as National Geographic HD, Discovery HD and Equator HD that continue to provide some excellent documentaries on science and nature.
Over all HDTV has come a long way in the past 9 years that I have been watching. There still are some programming that I would like to see go to HDTV. While not excessive, macroblocking is still an issue at times, but dropouts have been reduced to a minimum. Blu-ray was a big step in improving the picture and sound quality of movies. Some local US stations still need to add HD graphical equipment so they can post alerts on top of HD progamming rather than switching to SD. So, it is not perfect, but HDTV is getting close ... certainly the equipment has greatly improved in PQ and prices have dropped substantially. There is enough programming now to satisfy me to the point where ... "if it is not in HDTV it is not worth watching"!
Re: Commercials ... with the exception of the Superbowl I leave the room when commercials come on (to work on posts such as this) when watching live and skipping forward when watching on my PVR's.
Equipment ... I started with a Sony KV-36XBR400 which gave an excellent HD picture. Last year it was time upgrade to a larger screen and a set with HDMI inputs ... I upgraded to a 60" Pioneer Elite Signature Pro-141FD ... which IMO is by far the finest flat screen TV on the market today. The better the source the better the picture ... a reference quality BD (such as Phantom of the Opera - 2004) can result in a 3D like image. I also added a Pioneer Elite BDP-05FD. This player had some teething problems but with FW upgrades delivers a very reliable, outstanding picture.
Providers ... My first HDTV provider here in Canada was Star Choice. In 2004 I added Shaw Cable mainly due to the fact they were the first provider with a PVR. In 2005 I added Bell ExpressVu mainly because they were carrying more HD channels. Today each of my 3 providers has there pluses and minuses.
1. Bell TV (formerly Bell ExpressVu) ... pluses ... still has the most HD stations, not affected by heavy rains or light snow, reliable PVR, only PVR with an optional external hard drive, PVR has a dual tuner with picture-in-a-picture allowing 2 different sports events to be watched simultaneously. Minuses ... simsubs (when a program is being simultaneously shown on a Canadian Station they will block the American station and substitute the Canadian station ... a practice which I believe is violation of my freedoms or rights), tends to over compress resulting in excessive macroblocking at times, particularly during sports.
2. Star Choice ... pluses ... has gradually added more HD channels to the point that it has almost as many as Bell TV, does not simsub, has the best PQ of the 3 providers, reliable dual tuner PVR with a new one with an external hard drive coming soon. Minuses ... service knocked out by heavy rain or light snow due to the low angle of the satellite from my area.
3. Shaw Cable ... pluses ... I only keep this provider for times when weather knocks out my satellite service and at present I only have cable service for my old Sony in the kitchen/rec area, reliable PVR. Minuses ... fewest HD channels, sound dropouts are a problem at times on certain channels.
Television Stations ... HDNet has the finest PQ of any station on the air. ABC Boston ranks right up there with them. I regularly watch "Chronicle" (locally produced news magazine) on ABC Boston and find the PQ to be outstanding. Although PBS was an early HD broadcaster, they have fallen behind in the quantity of HD broadcasts. Too many programs are still presented in widescreen. As for the major networks, the PQ not only varies from station to station, but program to program and even from scene to scene! It was not until I bought my Pioneer that the differences really became noticeable! In Canada, CBC tends to vary widely in their HD PQ ... from outstanding to mediocre. TSN HD on the whole has much better PQ for sports than does CBC. CTV and Global are lagging sadly behind in presenting local programming and news in HDTV.
Programs ... most prime time programs are now broadcast in HD, and the majority of sports are HD. The Masters and the US Open Tennis Tournament both have excellent PQ and extensive hours of coverage (but they still need to add HD cameras on a couple more courts). There are a number of Specialty Channels such as National Geographic HD, Discovery HD and Equator HD that continue to provide some excellent documentaries on science and nature.
Over all HDTV has come a long way in the past 9 years that I have been watching. There still are some programming that I would like to see go to HDTV. While not excessive, macroblocking is still an issue at times, but dropouts have been reduced to a minimum. Blu-ray was a big step in improving the picture and sound quality of movies. Some local US stations still need to add HD graphical equipment so they can post alerts on top of HD progamming rather than switching to SD. So, it is not perfect, but HDTV is getting close ... certainly the equipment has greatly improved in PQ and prices have dropped substantially. There is enough programming now to satisfy me to the point where ... "if it is not in HDTV it is not worth watching"!
Re: Commercials ... with the exception of the Superbowl I leave the room when commercials come on (to work on posts such as this) when watching live and skipping forward when watching on my PVR's.
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eliwhitney
- Major Contributor
- Posts: 484
- Joined: Thu Dec 07, 2006 5:14 am
- Location: Oklahoma
I agree, hidefbob -
Certainy not as many years as yourself & absolutely not as vigorously - but - I stand {ignorantly, no doubt} completely in awe of those still "messing about" with these totally inadequate federal coupon Converters, rabbit ears & other assorted indoor antennas on CRTs!
A single viewing @ a friend's home watching / listening to that "Live From Vienna" w/ Julie Andrews or Rose Bowl Parade, etc., IS sufficient to make one become a staunch supporter !!!
ALL have had literally since 1998 in these United States to "save up" & become financially prepared to undertake this Next generation of broadcast medium !
To that end, I have not a shred of sympathy / compassion / patience / whatever to those who are "whining" about this (... completely unfair DTV Switch now ....) Total & utter poppycock, in my view !
In that 10 years interval, 100% could have prepared / made financial arrangements IF they had simply preferred to do so ..... otherwise, "sign off" & do without! ....... TV is Not a "right" .... it's a luxury, certainly Not a matter of "life & death!"
eli
Certainy not as many years as yourself & absolutely not as vigorously - but - I stand {ignorantly, no doubt} completely in awe of those still "messing about" with these totally inadequate federal coupon Converters, rabbit ears & other assorted indoor antennas on CRTs!
A single viewing @ a friend's home watching / listening to that "Live From Vienna" w/ Julie Andrews or Rose Bowl Parade, etc., IS sufficient to make one become a staunch supporter !!!
ALL have had literally since 1998 in these United States to "save up" & become financially prepared to undertake this Next generation of broadcast medium !
To that end, I have not a shred of sympathy / compassion / patience / whatever to those who are "whining" about this (... completely unfair DTV Switch now ....) Total & utter poppycock, in my view !
In that 10 years interval, 100% could have prepared / made financial arrangements IF they had simply preferred to do so ..... otherwise, "sign off" & do without! ....... TV is Not a "right" .... it's a luxury, certainly Not a matter of "life & death!"
eli
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stevekaden
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- Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 3:20 pm
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Roger Halstead
- Major Contributor
- Posts: 210
- Joined: Sun Feb 26, 2006 4:13 pm
Commercials? OTA and flags?
First, I thought one of the uses of a DVR was to skip commercials<:-)) The industry has been trying to get set up so we can't pause when the commercials come up and then fast forward. That's one of the great things about a DVR, so my conscience would not bother me a bit. OTOH I've not seen anything worth downloading. Wellll... I have recorded the sci-fi channel a few times to watch later, but that's about it. The DISH Network has an excellent DVR series and costs me less than the local cable. A friend who has all services ran into the same problem with Charter's DVR being complicated, lacking features, and not being reliable. He went back to TVIO for that. That said, I do have cable, but it's strictly for the high speed internet connection out here in the country.
Windows and DRM . I use XP Pro. I installed Vista Ultimate and went back to XP after 2 weeks. With some exceptions, Vista is only on those computers that came with it pre installed, or gamers. When it comes to OTA, my system records HD just fine and I've never come across anything yet with the flags set, but I've never used pay-per-view and am unlikely to ever do so.
Windows and DRM . I use XP Pro. I installed Vista Ultimate and went back to XP after 2 weeks. With some exceptions, Vista is only on those computers that came with it pre installed, or gamers. When it comes to OTA, my system records HD just fine and I've never come across anything yet with the flags set, but I've never used pay-per-view and am unlikely to ever do so.
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dabhome
- Member
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- Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2007 1:22 am
Re: Fighting DRM is such a pain.
I will agree the Comcast DVR can be improved. I would not call it a horrible piece of garbage or difficult to use. Assuming you are using a Motorola DVR, the only difficult part is raw searching. However, usually, you know when the show will air and then it is easy. Everything else is easy once you know how to do it. One other pain point is the remote they provide does not provide an advance button. But, most universal remotes can be programmed for the advance button.RichardBronosky wrote:... It was taking too much of my time from my new baby, so I gave in an accepted the Comcast DVR which is a horrible horrible horrible piece of garbage. It's so complicated to deal with (and I am an engineer) that I find myself just using bittorrent to get the shows that I should be able to record and exercise fair-use on.
Please give details as to why you think it is horrible. What functions are you trying to perform that you find difficult? Let us know how the DVR is configured and your setup. Maybe, we can help you out.
David